BELLEVUE, WA – When Second Amendment activists in Oregon launched recall efforts against three state lawmakers who pushed gun control measures in Salem this year, the chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms noted that politicians need to be occasionally reminded that gun owners are voters, too.
CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, speaking in general terms and not against specific individuals, said he “totally supports recall efforts.”
“When politicians work to undermine not only Second Amendment rights, but privacy rights as well,” Gottlieb observed, “gun owners need to make these politicians pay the price. This is part of democracy at work, and if someone elected to represent your interests continually works against you, then it’s time for a change.”
Gottlieb noted that three anti-gun politicians responsible for Colorado’s 2013 gun laws lost their jobs. Two were recalled by voters in their districts, and a third resigned her seat so it would not be lost to the other party, causing a shift in power in the legislature.
“We’re not going to campaign for or against a specific individual,” he explained. “But we do support the right of the citizens to remove from office anyone who acts to undermine their rights. Such decisions are always up to the voters, and that constituency includes gun owners who are acting under their First Amendment right, using recall to redress their grievances.
“Whether a recall effort is successful or not,” Gottlieb said, “the fact that people are willing to take that route sends a message to politicians that they cannot blithely ignore the concerns of their constituents, especially where fundamental civil rights are concerned.
“We’re living in a period when too many politicians believe they can ignore the concerns of their gun-owning constituents and get away with it,” he concluded. “At some point, Second Amendment voters are going to draw the line and once that line is crossed, anti-gun politicians will find themselves in political peril. Gun owners have rights, and they vote.”